Wireless lockset with integrated antenna, touch activation, and light communication method
A wireless electromechanical lock with one or more of an internal antenna, touch activation, and/or a light communication device that acts as a user interface. In some embodiments, the lock utilizes an antenna near the exterior face of the lockset, designed inside the metal body of the lockset itself. A light communication device is provided in some embodiments to communicate information, visually, to the user via animations and dynamic displays of light. In some embodiments, the lockset includes a touch activation capability, which can be used to lock/unlock the lock and/or otherwise provide input.
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This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 16/987,053, filed Aug. 6, 2020; which is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 14/689,766, filed Apr. 17, 2015, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,738,504; which is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 14/202,047, filed Mar. 10, 2014, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,024,759; which claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/792,896, filed Mar. 15, 2013. These applications are hereby expressly incorporated by reference in their entirety into the present application.
TECHNICAL FIELDThis disclosure relates generally to electro-mechanical locks.
BACKGROUND AND SUMMARYElectronic locks have gained increasing acceptance and widespread use in residential and commercial markets. These locksets control ingress through doors in a building by requiring certain electronic credentials. For example, these locksets typically include a control circuit that determines whether to unlock the lockset based on credentials provided by the user. In some cases, for example, the credentials and/or commands may be provided wirelessly to the lockset, such as disclosed in Pre-Grant Publication No. US 2012/0234058 for a “Wireless Access Control System and Related Methods,” filed Mar. 8, 2012, which is hereby incorporated by reference.
In the access control and security industries, wireless locksets typically include an antenna located on the interior side of the door, usually behind a plastic “RF window” to not interfere with the RF propagation. Some locksets attempt to place an antenna on the exterior side of the door, but must deal with the challenge of making the antenna aesthetically appealing, RF communication efficient, tamper resistant, and easy to manufacture.
According to one aspect, this disclosure provides a wireless electromechanical lock with one or more of an internal antenna, touch activation, and/or a light communication device that acts as a user interface. Although this disclosure describes these features as implemented on a deadbolt for purposes of example, these features are applicable to any type of lockset, including but not limited to deadbolts, knobset locks, handleset locks, etc.
In one embodiment, the lock is made of mixed metals and plastic, with engineered cavities to contain electronics and RF antennas. For example, in some embodiments, the lock utilizes an antenna near the exterior face of the lockset, designed inside the metal body of the lockset itself. This is unique in that the metal body has been engineered to meet strict physical security requirements and also allow the embedded front-facing antenna to propagate RF energy efficiently. This holds many advantages over other means of antenna placement including compact size, cleaner aesthetic appearance, simplistic manufacturing, and tamper resistance.
A light communication device is provided in some embodiments to communicate information, visually, to the user via animations and dynamic displays of light. For example, a light communication device could be formed in a ring-shape in some embodiments that is incorporated into the exterior of the lock. In some cases, the light communication device can be used to selectively illuminate regions to create animations of dynamic multi-color light and configurations of static light along the circumference of the exterior light ring to communicate multiple user messages. These animations allow mimicking of lock operation to be possible. For example, animations may include, but are not limited to, sequentially illuminating light segments to show the direction of bolt movement or slow animation of light to indicate the lockset is busy, etc. Embodiments are contemplated in which the light communication device could be formed in shapes other than circular for a ring, such as rectangular, square, triangular, etc.
In some cases, the lockset includes a touch activation capability, which can be used to lock/unlock the lock and/or otherwise provide input. In some embodiments, for example, the entire outside cover of the lock is touch sensitive and allows a user to touch the lock to activate various functions of the lockset. This capability is unique because it does not require any special keypad area, button press, or glass capacitive touch sensor area, but rather allows the entire diameter of the lockset cover to act as a capacitive touch sensor for activation.
According to a further aspect, this disclosure provides a lockset with a latch assembly including a bolt movable between an extended position and a retracted position. The lockset has a controller configured to electronically control movement of the bolt between the extended position and the retracted position. An interior assembly is provided that includes a turn piece for manually actuating the bolt between the extended position and the retracted position. The lockset has an exterior assembly including a mechanical lock assembly configured to manually actuate the bolt between the extended position and the retracted position. The exterior assembly includes a light communication device with a plurality of independently controllable regions in electrical communication with the controller. In some embodiments, the controller is configured to actuate multiple of the regions in a predefined configuration to identify a condition of the lockset.
Depending on the circumstances, the controller could be configured to actuate the predefined configuration by adjusting (a) illumination of multiple regions of the light communication device, (b) intensity of multiple regions of the light communication device, and/or (c) color of multiple regions of the light communication device. In some embodiments, the controller is configured to actuate the predefined configuration by sequentially adjusting adjacent regions of the light communication device in illumination, intensity, and/or color.
In some embodiments, the light communication device includes at least three regions that are configured to sequentially adjust in illumination, intensity, and/or color. For example, the controller could be configured to sequentially adjust adjacent regions in a first order to identify a first condition of the lockset. Likewise, the controller could be configured to sequentially adjust adjacent regions in a second order, which is opposite of the first order, to identify a second condition of the lockset. For example, the orders in which adjustments are made could indicate the direction of the bolt.
Embodiments are contemplated in which at least a portion of the regions of the light communication device are arranged in a ring-like shape. In some cases, for example, the controller could be configured to sequentially adjust adjacent regions in a generally clockwise fashion to indicate movement of the bolt in a first direction. The movement of the bolt in the opposition direction could be indicated with a counter-clockwise actuation of the regions. In some embodiments, the exterior assembly includes a cylinder guard cover having a generally frustoconical shape. In some cases, the light communication device is generally concentric to a frustum of the cylinder guard cover.
According to yet another embodiment, this disclosure provides a lockset with a latch assembly including a bolt movable between an extended position and a retracted position. A controller is provided to electronically control movement of the bolt between the extended position and the retracted position. The lockset includes an interior assembly including a turn piece for manually actuating the bolt between the extended position and the retracted position. An exterior assembly is provided with a mechanical lock assembly configured to manually actuate the bolt between the extended position and the retracted position. The exterior assembly includes a touch surface. The controller is configured to actuate movement of the bolt between the extended position and the retracted position responsive to capacitive touch sensing of the touch surface.
In some embodiments, the exterior assembly includes a cylinder guard cover extending from the mechanical lock assembly and the touch surface comprises an external surface of the cylinder guard cover. For example, in some cases, the touch surface comprises substantially the entire external surface of the cylinder guard cover. Embodiments are contemplated in which the cylinder guard cover has a generally frustoconical shape. For example, the touch surface could include substantially an entire side wall of the cylinder guard cover.
According to a further aspect, this disclosure provides a lockset with a locking device movable between a locked position and an unlocked position. The locking device includes a cylinder guard cover, a handle, and/or a rose. A touch surface is formed as part of the lockset. An electrical circuit is provided that is configured to identify touching of the touch surface. In some embodiments, an insulator separates the touch surface and the electrical circuit. A conductive medium could be provided that electrically connects the touch surface and the electrical circuit.
According to yet another aspect, the disclosure provides a lockset with a latch assembly including a bolt movable between an extended position and a retracted position. The lockset includes a controller configured to electronically control movement of the bolt between the extended position and the retracted position. An antenna is in electrical communication with the controller. An interior assembly is provided that includes a turn piece for manually actuating the bolt between the extended position and the retracted position. An exterior assembly is also provided with a mechanical lock assembly with a cylinder configured to manually actuate the bolt between the extended position and the retracted position. The exterior assembly includes a cylinder guard surrounding the cylinder that is configured to structurally protect the cylinder. The cylinder guard defines an internal cavity in which the antenna is at least partially disposed. In some cases, the antenna is entirely disposed in the internal cavity.
In some embodiments, the cylinder guard has a front side and a rear side. The cavity has an open end on the front side of the cylinder guard. A front cover extends from the open end of the cavity that is generally coplanar with a front face of the cylinder. Typically, the front cover is formed from a generally RF transparent material. In some cases, a light communication device extends between the open end of the cavity and the front cover. In some such situations, the light communication device is formed from a generally RF transparent material.
Additional features and advantages of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon consideration of the following detailed description of the illustrated embodiment exemplifying the best mode of carrying out the invention as presently perceived. It is intended that all such additional features and advantages be included within this description and be within the scope of the invention.
The present disclosure will be described hereafter with reference to the attached drawings which are given as non-limiting examples only, in which:
Corresponding reference characters indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views. The components in the figures are not necessarily to scale, emphasis instead being placed upon illustrating the principals of the invention. The exemplification set out herein illustrates embodiments of the invention, and such exemplification is not to be construed as limiting the scope of the invention in any manner.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGSWhile the concepts of the present disclosure are susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific exemplary embodiments thereof have been shown by way of example in the drawings and will herein be described in detail. It should be understood, however, that there is no intent to limit the concepts of the present disclosure to the particular forms disclosed, but on the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the disclosure.
This disclosure generally relates to an electromechanical lock with certain features. The term “electronic lock” is broadly intended to include any type of lockset that uses electrical power in some manner, including but not limited to electronic deadbolts, electronic lever sets, etc. This disclosure encompasses the integration of one or more of features described herein into any type of electronic lock and is not intended to be limited to any particular type of electronic lock.
In the example shown, the exterior assembly 102 is in the form of a deadbolt. As discussed above, however, this disclosure is not intended to be limited to only an electronic deadbolt, but encompasses any kind of electronic lock. As shown, the exterior assembly 102 includes a cylinder guard cover 108 that houses internal components of the exterior assembly 102. In the example shown, the cylinder guard cover 108 has a decorative shape with a rear portion 110 that would be adjacent a door (not shown) and a front portion 112 extending from the door. In this example, the cylinder guard cover 108 has a tapered shape from the rear portion 110 to the front portion 112, but the exterior assembly 102 and cylinder guard cover 108 could have a wide variety of different sizes and shapes depending on the particular circumstances.
In the embodiment shown, the front portion 112 of the exterior assembly 102 includes a front cover 114 that surrounds a mechanical locking assembly 116. A mechanical key (not shown) may be inserted into the mechanical locking assembly 116 to mechanically unlock the lock assembly 100.
In the embodiment shown, a light communication device 118 surrounds the front cover 114. In this example, the light communication device 118 is formed in the shape of a ring surrounding the front cover 114 and mechanical locking assembly 116. However, the light communication device 118 could be formed in other shapes or positioned differently on the exterior assembly 102.
As explained further below, the light communication device 118 includes a plurality of regions that could be independently controlled to visually communicate messages to the user, including but not limited to, an action currently being processed by the lock assembly 100, information about the status of the lock assembly 100, and/or requests for user input. By way of example, the light communication device 118 could visually communicate the direction of bolt movement by illuminating regions in sequence to create a rotation animation showing a direction of movement. The light communication device 118 could visually communicate messages to the user by controlling various attributes of the regions, such as turning regions on/off, changing intensity of regions, changing colors illuminated by regions, or other manners of changing the illumination of the light communication device 118.
In some embodiments, the lock assembly 100 may be touch activated. For example, the lock assembly 100 may use capacitive sensing to determine whether the user wants to actuate the lock assembly 100. The touch surface for capacitive sensing to actuate the lock assembly 100 could be any external surface, including but not limited to, a cylinder guard cover, a cylinder guard, a keyway, a handle, a rose, or other exterior surface of the lock assembly 100. In the example shown, the exterior assembly 102 uses capacitive sensing to determine when a user touches the cylinder guard cover 108. Accordingly, in the embodiment shown, the user is able to touch anywhere on the cylinder guard cover 108 to lock or unlock the lock assembly 100, or otherwise activate various functions of the lock assembly 100.
In the example shown, the exterior lock assembly 102 has a torque blade 120 extending from the rear portion 110. The torque blade extends through an adaptor 122 in the embodiment shown, which is received within a bore in a door to which the lock assembly 100 is being installed or mounted.
The latch assembly 104 is disposed in a core in a door and may be actuated manually by the mechanical locking assembly 116, or electronically by touching anywhere on the cylinder guard cover 108 (in the embodiment shown) to extend/retract a bolt 124. The bolt 124 moves linearly in and out of a sleeve 126. When the bolt 124 is retracted, an end of the bolt 124 is generally flush with a base plate 128. When the bolt 124 is extended, the bolt 124 protrudes through an edge bore in the door into an opening 130 of a strike plate 132, which is positioned in a jamb adjacent the door. As is typical, the strike plate 132 is attached to the jamb using fasteners 134. Likewise, fasteners 136 attach the base plate 128 of the latch assembly 104 to the door.
In the embodiment shown, the latch assembly 104 includes a spindle 138 that is drivable in a first direction to extend the bolt 124 and a second direction to retract the bolt 124. The spindle 138 is configured to receive the torque blade 120 such that rotation of the torque blade 120 in a first direction retracts the bolt 124; whereas, rotation of the torque blade 120 in the opposite direction causes the spindle to retract the bolt 124.
The torque blade 120 extends through the latch assembly 104 into an opening 140 in a mounting plate 142, which is attached to an interior side of the door. The torque blade 120 passes through the opening 140 and is received by a spindle driver 144. The spindle driver 144 provides electronic control of the bolt 124, such as using a motor to rotate the spindle driver 144 in either a first direction or in a second direction. Since the torque blade 120 is disposed within the spindle 138, rotation of the spindle driver 144 may be used to extend and/or retract the bolt 124 of the latch assembly 104. In the embodiment shown, fasteners 146 extend through holes 148 in the mounting plate, which are aligned with openings 150 in the latch assembly 104. A wiring harness (not shown) electrically connects electronics between the exterior assembly 102 and the interior assembly 106.
In the embodiment shown, referring also to
In the example shown, the light communication device 118 is a light pipe 162. As shown, referring also to
Referring also to
A clip 176 retains a rear portion of the mechanical locking assembly 116 within the exterior assembly 102. A retainer 178 and plate 180 are attached to a rear portion of the cylinder housing 172 for added tamper resistance and structural reinforcement of the cylinder housing 172. Fasteners 182, 184 are received within threaded openings in a back portion of the cylinder housing 172 to fasten the retainer 178 and plate 180.
For example, the light pipe may first indicate the first and second regions 188, 190, as shown in
In operation, the user may approach the exterior assembly 102, which could cause the light pipe 162 to illuminate to indicate the user is in range. If an authentication code transmitted by the user to the lock assembly 100 is authenticated or recognized, the light pipe 162 may indicate this, such as by flashing green or some sort of animation. The user may then touch anywhere on the cylinder guard cover 108 to unlock the lock assembly 100. For example, this may cause a motor to rotate the spindle driver 144, which rotates the torque blade 120 to retract the bolt 124. As the lock assembly 100 is actuating the bolt to the retracted position, the light pipe 162 may indicate this through some sort of animation, such as a clockwise animation. When the bolt 124 has been fully retracted, the light pipe 162 may indicate that the bolt 124 is unlocked. If there was an error in retracting the bolt 124, the light pipe 162 could indicate this.
In the embodiment shown, the battery contact assembly 210 includes a first contact 216 and a second contact 218. For example, the first contact 216 may connect a negative terminal of the battery 212 to the PCB 214 while the second contact 218 may connect the positive terminal of the battery 212. The first contact 216 includes a mounting portion 220 for mounting the first contact to the PCB 214. The second contact 218 includes a mounting portion 222 for mounting the second contact to the PCB 214. In the example shown, the mounting portion 220 includes legs 224 that extend through holes 226 in the PCB 214 for soldering the first contact 216 to the PCB 214 to establish an electrical connection between the PCB 214 and the first contact 216. In the example shown, the mounting portion 220 is mounted to the face of the PCB 214 (either the front or back as shown in
In the example shown, the mounting portion 222 of the second contact 218 includes legs 238 that extend through holes 240 in the PCB 214 for soldering the second contact 218 to the PCB 214 to establish an electrical connection between the PCB 214 and the second contact 218. In the example shown, the mounting portion 222 includes a face portion 242 and an edge portion 244 to straddle the PCB 214 (see
Although the present disclosure has been described with reference to particular means, materials, and embodiments, from the foregoing description, one skilled in the art can easily ascertain the essential characteristics of the invention and various changes and modifications may be made to adapt the various uses and characteristics without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.
Claims
1. A lockset mountable to a door having an interior side and an exterior side, the lockset comprising:
- a latch assembly including a bolt movable between an extended position and a retracted position;
- a controller configured to electronically control movement of the bolt between the extended position and the retracted position; and
- an interior assembly mountable to the interior side of the door and an exterior assembly mountable to the exterior side of the door;
- the exterior assembly including: a mechanical lock assembly configured to manually actuate the bolt between the extended position and the retracted position, the mechanical lock assembly having a front end; a cylinder guard cover at least partially surrounding the mechanical lock assembly, the cylinder guard cover having an external surface, the external surface entirely forming a touch surface, wherein the touch surface is a capacitive sensing touch surface and the cylinder guard cover is electrically coupled with the controller; and a front cover forming a generally planar, circular front surface positioned around the front end of the mechanical lock assembly, between the front end of the mechanical lock assembly and the cylinder guard cover, and entirely exterior to the door, the front cover being made from a generally RF transparent material that is a different material from the cylinder guard cover, wherein the generally RF transparent material is a non-conductive material;
- wherein the controller is configured to actuate movement of the bolt between the extended position and the retracted position responsive to: receiving credentials from a user device; and receiving a touch input at the touch surface.
2. The lockset of claim 1, wherein the cylinder guard cover concentrically surrounds the front cover and extends to a circular mounting footprint.
3. The lockset of claim 1, wherein the interior assembly includes a turn piece for manually actuating the bolt between the extended position and the retracted position.
4. The lockset of claim 1, wherein the cylinder guard cover has a tapered shape from a rear portion positionable immediately adjacent to a door to a front portion extending away from the door.
5. The lockset of claim 1, further comprising a light communication device at the exterior assembly, wherein one or more of an illumination, an intensity, or a color of the light communication device is adjustable.
6. The lockset of claim 1, wherein the latch assembly is disposed in a bore of a door, and wherein the exterior assembly and the interior assembly are connected to the latch assembly through the bore in the door.
7. The lockset of claim 6, further comprising a torque blade extending from the exterior assembly and in communication with the latch assembly.
8. The lockset of claim 1, wherein the cylinder guard cover is frustum-shaped.
9. A method of operating a lockset comprising:
- providing a lockset including: a latch assembly including a bolt movable between an extended position and a retracted position; a controller configured to electronically control movement of the bolt between the extended position and the retracted position; and an interior assembly and an exterior assembly; the exterior assembly including: a mechanical lock assembly operable to manually actuate the bolt between the extended position and the retracted position, the mechanical lock assembly having a front end; a cylinder guard cover having a generally frustoconical shape having a base and extending from the base toward a front face, the cylinder guard cover at least partially surrounding the mechanical lock assembly, the cylinder guard cover having an external surface, wherein the external surface entirely forms a touch surface and the touch surface is a capacitive sensing touch surface, and wherein the cylinder guard cover is electrically coupled with the controller; and a front cover positioned entirely toward the front face from the base and around the front end of the mechanical lock assembly, between the front end of the mechanical lock assembly and the cylinder guard cover, the front cover forming a generally planar, circular front surface and being made from a material different from the cylinder guard cover, the front cover being formed from a generally RF transparent material, wherein the generally RF transparent material is a non-conductive material;
- receiving credentials at the controller from a user device;
- receiving a touch input at the touch surface; and
- actuating movement of the bolt between the extended position and the retracted position upon receipt of the credentials and the touch input.
10. The method of claim 9, further comprising actuating the latch assembly via a torque blade, wherein the torque blade is in communication with the latch assembly and extends from the exterior assembly.
11. The method of claim 9, further comprising actuating the bolt between the extended position and the retracted position via a turn piece at the interior assembly.
12. A lockset mountable to a door, the lockset comprising:
- a latch assembly including a bolt movable between an extended position and a retracted position;
- a controller configured to electronically control movement of the bolt between the extended position and the retracted position;
- an interior assembly mountable to an interior side of the door and an exterior assembly mountable to an exterior side of the door, the exterior assembly including: a cylinder housing; a mechanical lock assembly extending through the cylinder housing and having a front face, the mechanical lock assembly comprising a lock cylinder having a keyway extending therethrough from the front face, the mechanical lock assembly being manually actuatable to move the bolt between the extended position and the retracted position; a front cover forming a generally planar, circular front surface that is entirely exterior to the door, the front cover surrounding the front face of the mechanical lock assembly; and a cylinder guard cover concentrically surrounding the front cover and extending to a circular mounting footprint, the cylinder guard cover providing an external touch surface electrically coupled with the controller, the external touch surface comprising an entire external surface of the cylinder guard cover;
- wherein the controller is electrically coupled to the cylinder guard cover and executes instructions to: receive an indication of a touch input at the external touch surface; wirelessly receive credentials from a user device; and based on validation of the credentials, actuate movement of the bolt between the extended position and the retracted position;
- wherein the front cover is made from a material different from the cylinder guard cover, the front cover being formed from a generally RF transparent material, and wherein the generally RF transparent material is a non-conductive material.
13. The lockset of claim 12, wherein the cylinder guard cover has a generally frustoconical shape extending between the circular footprint adjacent a door and the portion concentric with the front cover.
14. The lockset of claim 12, wherein the user device comprises a low-profile key fob.
15. The lockset of claim 12, further comprising a light ring positioned concentrically between the front cover and the cylinder guard cover.
16. The lockset of claim 12, further comprising a motor positioned within the interior assembly, the motor being connected to the bolt via a torque blade to move the bolt between the extended position and the retracted position in response to actuation from the controller.
17. The lockset of claim 12, wherein the cylinder guard cover is frustum-shaped.
18. The lockset of claim 17, wherein the cylinder guard cover is generally frustoconical.
19. The lockset of claim 12, wherein the cylinder guard cover has an opening that is positioned concentrically around the front cover, wherein the front face of the mechanical lock assembly is exposed through the opening.
20. The lockset of claim 1, wherein the lockset is mounted to the door and the exterior assembly is mounted to the exterior side of the door.
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Type: Grant
Filed: Feb 4, 2021
Date of Patent: Aug 9, 2022
Patent Publication Number: 20210156171
Assignee: Spectrum Brands, Inc. (Middleton, WI)
Inventors: Alan Uyeda (Irvine, CA), Michael Maridakis (Garden Grove, CA), Jerome F. Czerwinski, Jr. (Ladera Ranch, CA), Elliott B. Scheider (Foothill Ranch, CA), Troy M. Brown (Lake Forest, CA), David K J Kim (Mission Viejo, CA)
Primary Examiner: Kristina R Fulton
Assistant Examiner: Steven A Tullia
Application Number: 17/167,325
International Classification: E05B 47/00 (20060101); E05B 17/10 (20060101); G07C 9/00 (20200101); E05B 17/22 (20060101); E05B 47/02 (20060101); E05B 47/06 (20060101); E05C 1/02 (20060101);